Chimera (to/from Cerbera)
Discussion
Last night, wife and I were talking about me buying a bike on eBay.
£350
Apparently "you'll never use the bloody thing" (probably true) "you didn't notice for ages when your last one was stolen" (true) "it's complete waste of money" (I can sort of see that) "I'd prefer you bought another car instead of that" (unexpected result!!!!)
I don't currently have a convertible and rather miss having one around. So the question really is how does a Chimera (probably a 4.5) compare in day to day use vs a Cerb (which I already have, and will stay) in terms of performance (I know it will be slower, but frustratingly so?) and drivability (I am less likely to get murdered for following through with her suggestion, which may or may not have been slightly facetious, if she could also drive it which she won't if it's too challenging*)?
*she'd say she can drive anything and, whilst I don't have a problem with the idea her driving the Cerb at some point, when she's never driven >250bhp or anything without ABS/TC in the past 15+ years, the time to ask isn't 1) when it's dark and raining; or 2) when it's a lovely summer's day and I'm already looking forward to driving it!
If anyone's had both Cerb and Chim at the same time I'd be interested in hearing which you ended up using most for evenings/ weekends, when two seats would suffice. Wouldn't be able to do the school run in a Chim, which rules out much commuting, but it seems like there's a dearth of interesting 4 seat convertibles out there (only ones I can think of are too shouty on the branding and/or depreciation pits).
Have seen a couple of tidy looking ones that look worthy of consideration. Aside from what's listed in the buyer's guide, is there anything I should be aware of? Lastly, what's seen as a sensible budget for annual running costs (specialist, not DIY)? (I always allocate £3k pa for the Cerb but have never hit that for general maintenance)
For reasons the wife doesn't yet know, the timing of her request may be better than she realises...
£350
Apparently "you'll never use the bloody thing" (probably true) "you didn't notice for ages when your last one was stolen" (true) "it's complete waste of money" (I can sort of see that) "I'd prefer you bought another car instead of that" (unexpected result!!!!)
I don't currently have a convertible and rather miss having one around. So the question really is how does a Chimera (probably a 4.5) compare in day to day use vs a Cerb (which I already have, and will stay) in terms of performance (I know it will be slower, but frustratingly so?) and drivability (I am less likely to get murdered for following through with her suggestion, which may or may not have been slightly facetious, if she could also drive it which she won't if it's too challenging*)?
*she'd say she can drive anything and, whilst I don't have a problem with the idea her driving the Cerb at some point, when she's never driven >250bhp or anything without ABS/TC in the past 15+ years, the time to ask isn't 1) when it's dark and raining; or 2) when it's a lovely summer's day and I'm already looking forward to driving it!
If anyone's had both Cerb and Chim at the same time I'd be interested in hearing which you ended up using most for evenings/ weekends, when two seats would suffice. Wouldn't be able to do the school run in a Chim, which rules out much commuting, but it seems like there's a dearth of interesting 4 seat convertibles out there (only ones I can think of are too shouty on the branding and/or depreciation pits).
Have seen a couple of tidy looking ones that look worthy of consideration. Aside from what's listed in the buyer's guide, is there anything I should be aware of? Lastly, what's seen as a sensible budget for annual running costs (specialist, not DIY)? (I always allocate £3k pa for the Cerb but have never hit that for general maintenance)
For reasons the wife doesn't yet know, the timing of her request may be better than she realises...
They will string me up for this......but for 450 Chimaera money you could get her (I mean yourself) a decent 3.4 Boxster S.
Electric convertible roof that goes up/down at 30mph, heated leather electric seats, aircon, and if you choose one with the right extras, it will be quite a decent car. And with ABS and TCS it is possibly more likely to get her to agree to a touring holiday, sharing the driving.
Simply a nice alternative to the rawness of the TVR, for the days you simply cannot be arsed......or it's pissing down.
Electric convertible roof that goes up/down at 30mph, heated leather electric seats, aircon, and if you choose one with the right extras, it will be quite a decent car. And with ABS and TCS it is possibly more likely to get her to agree to a touring holiday, sharing the driving.
Simply a nice alternative to the rawness of the TVR, for the days you simply cannot be arsed......or it's pissing down.
Strangely, my neighbour has just sold his Griff and bought a Boxster S putting a lot of cash in the bank too (this is Yorkshire).
I had a Cerb before the Chim and loved the thing. I would never have used it as a daily driver and its the same for the Chim. Its for drive days, not being stuck in traffic so in that respect I think they are similar.
The Chim will be more torquey and probably more relaxing to drive as you don't need 6,000 revs to motor on. However, if you are trying to win 'er indoors onside, she really needs to drive one first. It must have power steering (a given) but ultimately its a TVR so the ride will be quite hard. I don't envy you the task of persuasion here.
Boxster S? Honda S2000? Lots to choose from.......Good luck
I had a Cerb before the Chim and loved the thing. I would never have used it as a daily driver and its the same for the Chim. Its for drive days, not being stuck in traffic so in that respect I think they are similar.
The Chim will be more torquey and probably more relaxing to drive as you don't need 6,000 revs to motor on. However, if you are trying to win 'er indoors onside, she really needs to drive one first. It must have power steering (a given) but ultimately its a TVR so the ride will be quite hard. I don't envy you the task of persuasion here.
Boxster S? Honda S2000? Lots to choose from.......Good luck
If you go for a top end Chim with all the extras it will be just as fast as any of the other variants
in most real world experiences, possibly faster, especially against a standard one and you can get the roof off
Huge boot becomes more useful the longer you own it and it's classic looks are timeless.
Most re built or tuned 450/500 produce enough torque to easily hold on until the final bit of acceleration and then road use doesn't lend itself to using that power so it becomes less important.
That torque is also your friend on those more lazy driving days when you want to stay at low revs, the power is always there so still an event pottering through villages in 4th gear at 30 mph.
The shunting can be removed and fully resolved not by larger plenum heights but just a decent ECU and mapper. Reliability becomes a real possibility.
These cars are still moving forward so get the right one and it will feel very very fast, and drag strip times prove it
in most real world experiences, possibly faster, especially against a standard one and you can get the roof off
Huge boot becomes more useful the longer you own it and it's classic looks are timeless.
Most re built or tuned 450/500 produce enough torque to easily hold on until the final bit of acceleration and then road use doesn't lend itself to using that power so it becomes less important.
That torque is also your friend on those more lazy driving days when you want to stay at low revs, the power is always there so still an event pottering through villages in 4th gear at 30 mph.
The shunting can be removed and fully resolved not by larger plenum heights but just a decent ECU and mapper. Reliability becomes a real possibility.
These cars are still moving forward so get the right one and it will feel very very fast, and drag strip times prove it
Belle427 said:
I'm not sure I could handle owning two, I love the event of driving the chim but would not want to use it daily.
The boxster is a very good shout, I considered one myself but am reluctant to sell the chim as values are climbing steadily.
I've been looking at many alternatives to a Chim and what does come to the fore is resale values, not only is the Chim the best car overall, if it's sorted,,,, of the cars I've considered it's value is holding and going up at a greater rate than those cars I've considered, Lotus are on par for value but my Chim was in my view so much more a car than say an Elise could ever be. The boxster is a very good shout, I considered one myself but am reluctant to sell the chim as values are climbing steadily.
It's not easy to run any old car as a daily, that would be my only concern if you haven't got other vehicles to use when it's not working exactly as it should. Just sort the alarm/immobiliser and get a good Ecu set up then it can be used daily with no real issues at all.
Simple to work on so if you like spanners is by far the cheapest car I can find to own and run, oh and is way faster than everything else other than a top modern expensive sportscar.
QBee said:
They will string me up for this......but for 450 Chimaera money you could get her (I mean yourself) a decent 3.4 Boxster S.
Electric convertible roof that goes up/down at 30mph, heated leather electric seats, aircon, and if you choose one with the right extras, it will be quite a decent car. And with ABS and TCS it is possibly more likely to get her to agree to a touring holiday, sharing the driving.
Simply a nice alternative to the rawness of the TVR, for the days you simply cannot be arsed......or it's pissing down.
Will you please take yourself outside and give your self a stern talking to!Electric convertible roof that goes up/down at 30mph, heated leather electric seats, aircon, and if you choose one with the right extras, it will be quite a decent car. And with ABS and TCS it is possibly more likely to get her to agree to a touring holiday, sharing the driving.
Simply a nice alternative to the rawness of the TVR, for the days you simply cannot be arsed......or it's pissing down.
What's rather amusing to me is how Tvr suffered from build quality and lack of testing etc etc so now they are all old cars requiring repairs to electrics / mechanics every now and then.
Because Tvr are hand built by idiots it's quite easy for us idiots to take them apart and fix them but fixing a Porsche, not sure if this idiot would feel comfortable tweaking it
Repairs are cheaper on Tvr ,,,, mostly
Because Tvr are hand built by idiots it's quite easy for us idiots to take them apart and fix them but fixing a Porsche, not sure if this idiot would feel comfortable tweaking it
Repairs are cheaper on Tvr ,,,, mostly
ClassicChimaera said:
What's rather amusing to me is how Tvr suffered from build quality and lack of testing etc etc so now they are all old cars requiring repairs to electrics / mechanics every now and then.
Because Tvr are hand built by idiots it's quite easy for us idiots to take them apart and fix them but fixing a Porsche, not sure if this idiot would feel comfortable tweaking it
Repairs are cheaper on Tvr ,,,, mostly
Mechanical reapirs are simple on a beetle - anything even remotely related to something approximately close to the engine - engine out is the first thing you have to do. Simples. Because Tvr are hand built by idiots it's quite easy for us idiots to take them apart and fix them but fixing a Porsche, not sure if this idiot would feel comfortable tweaking it
Repairs are cheaper on Tvr ,,,, mostly
Mind you, on a Phazed TVR there seems to be some similarity...
Thanks for the input chaps. For the avoidance of any doubt, this isn't going to be "her car" and will most definitely be one of mine!
In recent years, aside from TVRs, I've considered the following for roofless action:
XKR - drives nicely but I feel they're in an awkward place in terms of how they've aged
911 - test drove a C4S (and have thrashed a 2 round Bedford) but they just don't do it for me, and no matter how good a Boxster is, I'm not convinced I am a Porsche sort of chap (unless it was a very early 911/912)
SL500 - found it a bit bland and "everyday", definitely a cruiser
Exige S - I really expected to buy this... but it didn't shine (crap test drive route?)
S2000 - mate had one, really like them but have had crazy insurance quotes (4x Cerb!)
A Tuscan could be an option, but I think I'd prefer a full convertible, and the prices of those are a good bit higher than a Chim.
Depending on whether I sell my track car, which I might as I could easily hire something for the odd day a year that I'm managing of late, this would be either a 4th or 5th car so have winter/practicality taken care of... but equally I don't want to buy one and then discover that I never reach for the keys.
Out of interest, there don't seem to be (m)any in the classifieds right now with aircon. Was it extremely rare for folk to specify this option?
In recent years, aside from TVRs, I've considered the following for roofless action:
XKR - drives nicely but I feel they're in an awkward place in terms of how they've aged
911 - test drove a C4S (and have thrashed a 2 round Bedford) but they just don't do it for me, and no matter how good a Boxster is, I'm not convinced I am a Porsche sort of chap (unless it was a very early 911/912)
SL500 - found it a bit bland and "everyday", definitely a cruiser
Exige S - I really expected to buy this... but it didn't shine (crap test drive route?)
S2000 - mate had one, really like them but have had crazy insurance quotes (4x Cerb!)
A Tuscan could be an option, but I think I'd prefer a full convertible, and the prices of those are a good bit higher than a Chim.
Depending on whether I sell my track car, which I might as I could easily hire something for the odd day a year that I'm managing of late, this would be either a 4th or 5th car so have winter/practicality taken care of... but equally I don't want to buy one and then discover that I never reach for the keys.
Out of interest, there don't seem to be (m)any in the classifieds right now with aircon. Was it extremely rare for folk to specify this option?
Mine has air-con. I think it was a fairly rare option - I vaguely recall hearing it was a £2k extra. Astonishingly it still works although some of the components are looking a bit tired, e.g. the condenser sits in front of the radiator so gets first impact with anything coming through the front. Also, the pipework sits above the offside rocker cover so any work on the top of the engine involves decommissioning the a/c.
Thing is, in 5 years I've had my Chim I hardly ever use the a/c. If it's nice out then the roof is off, and a/c would be pointless. If I'm stuck in traffic and it's all getting a bit hot then the extra heat load from the a/c dumped into the engine bay worries me so I usually sweat it out rather than risk a boil-over.
Thing is, in 5 years I've had my Chim I hardly ever use the a/c. If it's nice out then the roof is off, and a/c would be pointless. If I'm stuck in traffic and it's all getting a bit hot then the extra heat load from the a/c dumped into the engine bay worries me so I usually sweat it out rather than risk a boil-over.
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